Assignment 1: Philosophy Of Clinical Counseling
Running head: PHILOSPHY OF COUNSELING
Philosophy of Counseling
Jordan Gilley
January 28, 2015 Dalton State College
Introduction
If you were to look up the definition of Clinical Psychology you would find the definition to be, “the field of clinical psychology integrates science, theory, and practice to understand, predict, and alleviate maladjustment, disability, and discomfort as well as to promote human adaptation, adjustment, and personal development. Clinical psychology focuses on the intellectual, emotional, biological, psychological, social, and behavioral aspects of human functioning across the life span, in varying cultures, and at all socioeconomic level” (Todd &
Bohart, 1999, pg. 5). In my philosophy I do believe this to be true among other things. I believe …show more content…
the Bible to be my main source of truth.
View of Human Nature
With any philosophy we have to start at the beginning of the nature of people and their disorders.
Why are people the way they are? Is it nature or nurture? I believe we do not start out as a “blank slate.” We are all born with specific genes and attributes that are unique to us. We are all individuals unique in our own ways. However our experiences mature and shape us for good or for bad. Think about life as a poker game and in your hand are the cards you have been dealt.
You were given the cards and how you play the game or your “experiences” determine the outcome. Morality and values are not subjective sets of ideas that vary from person to person, or even culture to culture. Rather, they are determined by Someone who is above the created realm and gives them to all whom are created. This “Someone” gives you the cards. Without being given these basic values and morals utter chaos would reign in the world. In the Bible Jesus says
“For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, slanders.” (Matthew 15:19, NASB) This obviously points to the fact that our hearts are the central problem in addressing the behaviors and actions of our lives. In the Bible we also get a clear picture of the condition of the human being. Romans 3:23 says “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (NASB).
The logical implication is that one who has sinned (defined as a thought, action upon a thought, or behavior that is against the character and perfection of
God’s character) is called a “sinner”. Because we have all sinned we can not experience the life
God intended us to live. Our sin separates us from God and therefore is the root issue in our lives. Not every struggle is a result of personal sin though. If a client were abused, traumatized, rejected, neglected, etc., the sin is not theirs but the results of someone else’s sin plays out in their life. Many people need counseling because of the sins of others, not just their own.
Our behaviors and actions flow directly from our sinful thoughts, actions, and desires. If someone were to live their life on a deserted island and never have any human contact they would still have the propensity and desire to be greedy, lustful, prideful, and other things that go directly against the character of God. Society and our environment do not determine our actions as much as our own inward distorted desires. The root issue is a heart problem, not one of needing just a “behavioral adjustment” to correct the actions. When clients come to …show more content…
counseling because they are struggling with something that is a result of someone else’s sin the direction and focus is still on their need for a Savior to give them the inner ability to have the strength, patience, forgiveness, and healing to move forward in their life.
Therapist/Client Relationship
My role as a therapist, is to lift the fallen, restore the broken, and to heal the hurting. I am not there to judge or “pick sides.” We were created for relationships. In order for a therapist to have the type of relationship with the client that allows them to challenge the client they need to be perceived as open, attentive, willing to be challenged, a listener, fair, friendly, firm, and trusting. A great client/counselor relationship is not totally essential to change occurring in the life of a client, but it is very important. I should be able to empathise with the client, teach them coping mechanisms, and offer a different perspective or insight as to what the issue might be.
The client should not rely on me solely as the fix all to any problem. The therapist assists the client in identifying dysfunctional beliefs. The counselor also discovers alternative rules for living for the client. The therapist acts as the teacher and teaches new abilities and skills to the client. The client understands their problem better and practice changing selfdefeating ways, such as, acting and thinking. In this way, it is important to maintain a truthful, secure, confident relationship between the client and the helper to be effective. The essential objective is for change to occur; the change could be an environmental change, specific behavioral change, change in thinking, identifying and awareness.
Strengths and Weaknesses as a Therapist
I like to think I'm good at seeing the "big picture." If you are able to take a step back and look at life this way you don't worry about trivial things as much because you then realize that they don't matter in the big scheme of things.
As a therapist I could then be able to help teach my clients to do the same. I would teach them to focus on the big picture rather than trivial details.
One thing that I will have to work on is not giving advice. My friends come to me for advice
right now and it's really hard to break that habit. I've started to take myself out of the situation and offer guidelines that could help them in the situation because I don't want them to depend on me and the same goes for my future clients. I want to be a Marriage and Family Therapist and
I'm not married, nor do I have a family of my own. Some people could see this as a problem because I don't know specifically know the situation. However I do empathize with people and can relate to them in other areas. I would also explain to them then that even if I were married I still wouldn’t know the exact situation because every situation is different and unique to that individual. Conclusion
My philosophy of counseling beings with the fact that all of humanity has intrinsic value.
The ideal counseling situation would be one where a client is able to see a loving
relationship modeled between the counselor and the client in such a way that they being to desire to know more about God. It is my duty as a counselor to show my client their position before God as a sinful person and also show them the grace and mercy He offers to everyone who believes in
Him. Successful counseling is built around teaching and training the client in the Word of God, confronting them in a merciful, loving, and compassionate way through caring relationships, having them accept the free gift God has to offer them, and changing their thoughts and actions based on the power and authority of the Bible.
Philosophy of Counseling
Jordan Gilley
January 28, 2015 Dalton State College
Introduction
If you were to look up the definition of Clinical Psychology you would find the definition to be, “the field of clinical psychology integrates science, theory, and practice to understand, predict, and alleviate maladjustment, disability, and discomfort as well as to promote human adaptation, adjustment, and personal development. Clinical psychology focuses on the intellectual, emotional, biological, psychological, social, and behavioral aspects of human functioning across the life span, in varying cultures, and at all socioeconomic level” (Todd &
Bohart, 1999, pg. 5). In my philosophy I do believe this to be true among other things. I believe …show more content…
the Bible to be my main source of truth.
View of Human Nature
With any philosophy we have to start at the beginning of the nature of people and their disorders.
Why are people the way they are? Is it nature or nurture? I believe we do not start out as a “blank slate.” We are all born with specific genes and attributes that are unique to us. We are all individuals unique in our own ways. However our experiences mature and shape us for good or for bad. Think about life as a poker game and in your hand are the cards you have been dealt.
You were given the cards and how you play the game or your “experiences” determine the outcome. Morality and values are not subjective sets of ideas that vary from person to person, or even culture to culture. Rather, they are determined by Someone who is above the created realm and gives them to all whom are created. This “Someone” gives you the cards. Without being given these basic values and morals utter chaos would reign in the world. In the Bible Jesus says
“For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, slanders.” (Matthew 15:19, NASB) This obviously points to the fact that our hearts are the central problem in addressing the behaviors and actions of our lives. In the Bible we also get a clear picture of the condition of the human being. Romans 3:23 says “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (NASB).
The logical implication is that one who has sinned (defined as a thought, action upon a thought, or behavior that is against the character and perfection of
God’s character) is called a “sinner”. Because we have all sinned we can not experience the life
God intended us to live. Our sin separates us from God and therefore is the root issue in our lives. Not every struggle is a result of personal sin though. If a client were abused, traumatized, rejected, neglected, etc., the sin is not theirs but the results of someone else’s sin plays out in their life. Many people need counseling because of the sins of others, not just their own.
Our behaviors and actions flow directly from our sinful thoughts, actions, and desires. If someone were to live their life on a deserted island and never have any human contact they would still have the propensity and desire to be greedy, lustful, prideful, and other things that go directly against the character of God. Society and our environment do not determine our actions as much as our own inward distorted desires. The root issue is a heart problem, not one of needing just a “behavioral adjustment” to correct the actions. When clients come to …show more content…
counseling because they are struggling with something that is a result of someone else’s sin the direction and focus is still on their need for a Savior to give them the inner ability to have the strength, patience, forgiveness, and healing to move forward in their life.
Therapist/Client Relationship
My role as a therapist, is to lift the fallen, restore the broken, and to heal the hurting. I am not there to judge or “pick sides.” We were created for relationships. In order for a therapist to have the type of relationship with the client that allows them to challenge the client they need to be perceived as open, attentive, willing to be challenged, a listener, fair, friendly, firm, and trusting. A great client/counselor relationship is not totally essential to change occurring in the life of a client, but it is very important. I should be able to empathise with the client, teach them coping mechanisms, and offer a different perspective or insight as to what the issue might be.
The client should not rely on me solely as the fix all to any problem. The therapist assists the client in identifying dysfunctional beliefs. The counselor also discovers alternative rules for living for the client. The therapist acts as the teacher and teaches new abilities and skills to the client. The client understands their problem better and practice changing selfdefeating ways, such as, acting and thinking. In this way, it is important to maintain a truthful, secure, confident relationship between the client and the helper to be effective. The essential objective is for change to occur; the change could be an environmental change, specific behavioral change, change in thinking, identifying and awareness.
Strengths and Weaknesses as a Therapist
I like to think I'm good at seeing the "big picture." If you are able to take a step back and look at life this way you don't worry about trivial things as much because you then realize that they don't matter in the big scheme of things.
As a therapist I could then be able to help teach my clients to do the same. I would teach them to focus on the big picture rather than trivial details.
One thing that I will have to work on is not giving advice. My friends come to me for advice
right now and it's really hard to break that habit. I've started to take myself out of the situation and offer guidelines that could help them in the situation because I don't want them to depend on me and the same goes for my future clients. I want to be a Marriage and Family Therapist and
I'm not married, nor do I have a family of my own. Some people could see this as a problem because I don't know specifically know the situation. However I do empathize with people and can relate to them in other areas. I would also explain to them then that even if I were married I still wouldn’t know the exact situation because every situation is different and unique to that individual. Conclusion
My philosophy of counseling beings with the fact that all of humanity has intrinsic value.
The ideal counseling situation would be one where a client is able to see a loving
relationship modeled between the counselor and the client in such a way that they being to desire to know more about God. It is my duty as a counselor to show my client their position before God as a sinful person and also show them the grace and mercy He offers to everyone who believes in
Him. Successful counseling is built around teaching and training the client in the Word of God, confronting them in a merciful, loving, and compassionate way through caring relationships, having them accept the free gift God has to offer them, and changing their thoughts and actions based on the power and authority of the Bible.